“I was an iPad skeptic”

Ars staff reflects on three years of tablets post-iPad. "I could live without it, but I'd rather not."

It's hard to believe that the iPad and the hundreds of tablets that arrived in its wake have been around for only three years. On April 3, 2010, Apple released the original iPad to the public, kicking off a whirlwind of innovation in a space that was previously known only for niche, experimental, and downright odd products. One could still argue that the iPad—and other tablets like it—are meant for a niche audience, but it's clear that tablets as we know them today have struck a chord with the masses. Apple alone has sold 100 million iPads as of October 2012.

It feels like modern tablets have been around a lot longer, but three years is still nothing to sneeze at. Reflecting upon the last three years of tablet mania, the Ars staff and contributors began to share stories about how our iPads or other tablets have changed how we interact with our devices and the Internet. Most of us were heavy tablet skeptics when the iPad was first announced, and some of us still are. So in honor of the three-year anniversary of the iPad, we decided to share some of our experiences with you on how our lives have changed—or how they haven't, depending the case.

Tablets have earned a place in our lives

I was definitely a tablet skeptic—I can use my laptop to do anything a tablet can do! What a waste to get an extra device! But I eventually picked up an iPad anyway and learned four lessons. First, the utility of technology isn't simply about end results but about the process of obtaining them. My three-year-old can barely use a mouse, much less open a laptop and launch programs—but she has no problem swiping her way through the unlock screen, flipping through screens of apps, launching her educational games, playing them, quitting them, launching other games, and shutting off the device when finished. Sure, many of the same programs could run on the laptop as well, but even so, they would remain inaccessible to her for a few a more years. My kids are tablet power users who already understand concepts like code updates ("Dad, see if there are any new levels out for Cut the Rope!") and crashes ("This program is broken. I'm going to try another one").

Second, the power of tablets exceeded my expectations. Tablets looked at first like decent consumption devices for books, music, and video—and indeed they were often described in those terms. But even the imprecision of a touch interface was soon put to use for more creative ends. While few creation apps on tablets can match pro tools on computers, they can at least throw open creative possibilities to millions of amateurs—and for just a few bucks an app. When I watch a five-year-old and her friend create their own princess cartoon, complete with hand-drawn backgrounds, animation, music, and narrative voiceover—all without any help—I think back to all the things I wanted to try when I was kid (claymation stop-motion animation of giant monsters!) and marvel at just how powerful creative tools now are.

Third, many people actually prefer locked-down computing environments. My parents have both picked up iPads in their retirement and use them constantly, even shooting video and sending it to relatives. This never once happened when doing so required using a camera, hooking that camera up to the computer, uploading footage, compressing it, and e-mailing it out. And they are largely free of worries about malware or the complications of the Windows desktop. For people who largely need consumption apps and a Web browser, the security advantages and simplicity of tablets are features, not bugs.

The original iPad review

When Ars Technica got our hands on our first iPad, we wrote 18 pages of review on a product that was quite unique in the market at the time. "The iPad is likely to just be a starting point for Apple and for multitouch computing in general," we wrote. Ultimately, the conclusion we came to in the review is the same you'll find in the experiences that many Ars staffers have shared in this retrospective. As we wrote in 2010: "Can the iPad replace a netbook or a laptop? For some of you hardcore users, probably not. For those who use netbooks as a lightweight way to browse the Web, chat a bit, and do some light work: yes, it can."

Finally, I find using the tablet a more soothing experience. This is unlikely to be a universal feeling, but as someone who spends my entire day at a computer using a mouse-and-keyboard, my hands welcome a chance to do something different and my back welcomes a chance to recline on the couch. But there's a mental component, too. Cracking open my laptop in the evening presents me with windows holding to-do lists, open browser tabs for in-progress stories, instant messages, e-mail, and book projects. In short, I feel like I've just returned to the office. Using a tablet feels, however illogically, like being at home.

Laptop neglect. That's the best way to describe how the iPad has changed my computing habits since its introduction three years ago. Before the iPad, my MacBook was an all-purpose device, used all over the house for all sorts of tasks. Since I purchased my first iPad, my MacBook is now a single-purpose machine, used only for work. If I was sitting on the couch, I'd have my laptop with me maybe a quarter of the time. Now, I've got my iPad 100 percent of the time.

In addition to displacing my laptop, the iPad has also been chasing paper out of my house. I buy and read books on the iPad. I'm an avid magazine reader, and as Sports Illustrated, The Economist, Rugby World, and The Atlantic have come out with full-featured digital editions, I've let my print subscriptions lapse. I'm also much happier reading The New York Times via its iOS app than manipulating large pieces of paper. And the apps leave more room in the recycling bin for things like empty beer cans and wine bottles.

Has it revolutionized my life? No, it's just a tablet. But it has made content consumption a lot more convenient for me. Watching TV with my iPad, I can answer nagging questions like which season of 30 Rock David Schwimmer appeared in, and then browse Facebook during a commercial break. It's also a way to take little mental vacations: I can zone out for a few minutes and play a mindless iOS game or browse the 730-page funny pictures thread in the Lounge.

My home is now a three iPad household: Me, the technologist/early adopter/occasional hacker; my wife, the librarian and mediavore; and my 18-year-old son, the musician and recording engineer. My daughter, the 12-year old, uses a second-hand Samsung Galaxy Tab for texting and games.

The Galaxy Tab gets used more than all the iPads combined. That may say more about the user than the devices, but it also has to do with form factor.

As an early adopter (well, not too early—I waited for the iPad 2), I tried to push the boundaries of what the iPad could do. I often used it instead of a notebook for distinctly notebook-like things, courtesy of a Bluetooth keyboard. Using Mail, the iWork apps, Skype, and a couple of other apps, it was my mobile office. Its size was more amenable to use on an airplane with the Belkin keyboard and folio than my aging Toshiba Satellite. But since I've gotten the MacBook Air, I use it a lot less for those things, and I use my iPhone more because of its size. Now my iPad is more of an e-reader and a Netflix platform than work station. I've considered handing it down to my daughter because it spends more time in a drawer than anywhere else.

My wife uses her iPad to read e-galleys—early reader e-editions of upcoming books. It has reduced the clutter of books around the house. Her library system has started to try to get librarians to use the iPad as a reference tool, allowing them to wander the floor and help patrons find the books they want. That effort still has some kinks in it, since the iPads only have access to the public Wi-Fi and thus the same catalog system as patrons use. (Sadly, it's one that can't tell them the circulation status of a book as well as the computers on their desks.)

My 18-year old uses the iPad and GarageBand to do rough compositions of songs, to play with ideas, and as a personal practice amp for electric guitar. The iPad has become a staple of live sound, with apps that allow an engineer to adjust board levels wirelessly from anywhere within a venue. He also uses it for social media and to check his e-mail. But his needs exceed the iPad's grasp; he would rather lug the iMac I handed down to him around because it runs ProTools.

My daughter is the most tablet-focused of all of us. She takes her Galaxy Tab to school, collects video for reports, plays games, watches videos, and uses a program called Text + to send friends SMS messages. Her school uses Google Apps, so she collaborates on Google Drive docs for her projects. The Galaxy Tab is her constant companion, largely because she doesn't have a smartphone or a dedicated personal computer like the rest of us—and because the Galaxy Tab is more portable than the iPad.

The iPad first debuted when I was working at an Apple-centric publication, but back then I was incredibly skeptical. I had just invested in a MacBook Pro and was kind of irked at the idea that I had to switch up my lifestyle to accommodate this new… thing. Now tablets are as ubiquitous as smartphones, and although it’s not necessary to have one, it’s certainly feels essential. I now have three in my household: a third-generation iPad, a 32GB Nexus 7, and a Microsoft Surface with Windows RT. One is always within arm’s reach, but it’s usually the iPad that I pick up when I’m in the mood to consume content.

I started my career in the world of print and continue to be a huge evangelist of the medium. But as technology progresses, I’ve realized that I have to change the way I consume it, too. So far, only the iPad has been able to deliver the kind of magazine experience I’d expect in this new “digital age.” New issues are delivered to me via Newsstand, and I can easily flip through pages, click on interactive content, and navigate to the websites offering the products I’m interested in. I also appreciate that some publishers offer both print and digital subscriptions so that I can access those issues but still have the actual magazine at home to collage and snip from. Adobe has even made it easier for publishers to push their issues through to the iPad. For the most part, I no longer have to store any physical magazines. I have access to every issue I’ve ever paid for, as it’s all linked to my iTunes account.

It’s also my primping and cooking companion: I’ll use it to stream Spotify while I’m getting ready for a night out, and refer to Evernote while I’m trying out a new recipe in the kitchen. While it hasn’t replaced my Kindle for reading e-books (the E Ink is easier on my eyes), I’m not sure I ever want to live without it again, even if I only mostly use it to read magazines.

I've been using tablets regularly since the iPad 2 came out, and it has completely changed my "leisure-time" computing—and it has even had some small influence on my work computing. While I'm still attached to a traditional computer during regular business hours, I now use a tablet for the majority of my time spent browsing the Web or writing short e-mails at night and on the weekends.

This holds true for both personal and work things, which can often feel like one and the same. Being tech-obsessed, I'm constantly reading news or Twitter on a tablet. (I do the same on my phone, but only if I am out of the house and thus not near my tablet.) If I find something newsworthy, I'll make a note to myself or e-mail colleagues who might be interested. Still, I have no desire to make the leap to writing articles on a tablet. If I hit the point where I'm writing an e-mail longer than a couple of sentences or am writing something for publication, I shift to a laptop or desktop. Physical keyboards are awesome!

I still see tablet holdouts argue that they don't need tablets, and that's absolutely true. Almost no one "needs" a tablet. But lots of us want them, and that's a perfectly good reason to buy one. Tablets can both replace some of the time otherwise spent on "real" computers and increase the amount of time spent computing in general. For example, I am now more likely to read long form articles, because if I see something during the day that I don't have time to read, I save it to read on my tablet at night. There are more pros than cons, but the expansion of time spent computing can be both good and bad. Even when I'm trying to read a book (on my e-reader) that tablet is right there, beckoning me, and that's not always a good thing.

I didn't initially see the appeal of the original iPad, which my then-employer bought for me in the pre-multitasking, pre-Notification Center, pre-multiple-Exchange-accounts dark days of iOS 3.2. When it finally arrived, iOS 4.2 helped bring the tablet into its own, and subsequent hardware and software updates (as well as a steady stream of tablet-ready apps) further convinced me that tablets could fill a niche that smartphones couldn't. However, the advent of lightweight and powerful Ultrabooks and MacBooks Air that didn't weigh much more than the iPad happened at about the same time, so if I'm traveling I typically choose the computer over the tablet.

Smaller tablets like the Nexus 7 and iPad mini change this equation. They're large enough to be good at tablet-y things, but small enough to ride shotgun in your laptop bag when you're on long trips. The Nexus 7 in particular has been a constant companion on the road in the last six months, primarily because it's a near-perfect e-reader while also being a pretty good device for checking e-mail, managing calendars, and doing general Web browsing. It would probably be hyperbole to say that tablets have changed my life, but the smaller ones at least have found a very comfortable niche in between my laptop and my smartphone that I'd hate to see unfilled.

I won't deny it—when Apple announced the iPod, and later the iPhone, I was a skeptic. I didn't see the point, and I didn't want to be the first on the block to own either of the shiny new gadgets. The iPad, though, was different. PDFs no longer needed printing out. It had the perfect form factor for reading comics. Ten-hour battery life meant that needing a laptop on a plane for entertainment was a thing of the past. Those first few months saw me use it for note-taking in meetings, a task made slightly harder due to the constant stream of questions from colleagues about the new device: "Is that an iPad?" "Can you really type on it?" "Are you from the future?" A work-issued MacBook Air means I don't use it for meetings as much anymore, although with double the battery life and built-in connectivity thanks to LTE, I still break out the iPad from time to time.

Primarily though, it's a content consumption device for me. It keeps me occupied on my daily WMATA commute, and it streams familiar NPR stations in unfamiliar hotels. A transition to digital magazines means I no longer need to wait five or six weeks to get the most recent issue from the UK, and the only physical books I buy any more are coffee table sized. An upgrade to an iPad 3, with its retina display, has made reading comics or scientific papers a joy, and streaming Netflix or DirecTV in bed is a breeze. Yes, the keyboard is a pain to type with. Yes, it can be a little bit heavy when reading one-handed, but no more so than a hardback. Trying to read outside in the sun doesn't always work well, but when it's 2am and the lights are off it's a different story.

Happy Birthday, iPad. I can't wait to see what the next three years will bring.

Jacqui Cheng
Jacqui is an Editor at Large at Ars Technica, where she has spent the last eight years writing about Apple culture, gadgets, social networking, privacy, and more. Emailjacqui@arstechnica.com//Twitter@eJacqui

254 Reader Comments

I love my iPad, 3rd generation. I bought it for the "cool factor" but it completely changed the way I compute. Outside of work, I hardly use my laptop or even my desktop anymore. iPad handles all of my casual computing.

I had an iPad 2 for a while, but I never used it. For reading books my Kindle is much better, for real work my laptop is much better, and if I want to play mobile games I always have my phone with me so most of the time I just use that.

I have an iPad that I got through work, and I use almost exclusively for reading emails and Twitter, while my kids use it to watch Netflix. I find the unnecessary UI garnishments on things like newstand publications are just annoying after the initial visual impact and just get in the way. If I need to reply to an email or write more than a sentence, I switch over to a laptop or desktop, mostly because of the dreadful iOS keyboard. Also I often want to work in two Apps at once, and the clumsy "multi-tasking" makes that painful on iOS and is reminiscent of Terminate and Stay Resident (TSR) apps from MS DOS days!

In the month or two leading up to the announcement of the original iPad, I became acutely aware of how bad the touchscreen computer market was at the time, as I was investigating buying one. When the iPad was announced, I immediately realized what Apple had. I knew that this device was going to change everything, and that I would actually be able to use it to completely replace my laptop (back in high school). For a year, I used nothing but the original iPad. I became an expert in the art of two handed tablet typing, and typed an entire research paper on the touchscreen without any trouble at all. It fulfilled every expectation I had for what a computer always should have been, but by the end of that year I was power hungry, so I built an overpowered desktop. Nowadays, I use a Nexus 10 in conjunction with that still powerful desktop, and I think it is a perfect duo. As better as Android on tablets is versus iOS, I will freely admit that I miss iWork, and in-browser PDF viewing. Android gives me the freedom I need from my tablet, but it does come with a cost. Now, however, I can compile code, plug in flash drives via USB OTG, I can even hook in both a mouse and keyboard. The OS doesn't hinder me in many ways at all... but Google really needs to step up their office suite game.

Both iOS and Android make for excellent tablet experiences, and don't let anyone give you FUD about some absence of tablet optimized apps for Android -- tablet optimized apps are numerous.

I'm generally a power user - I program, I investigate, and I work carefully through my interface to optimize my work performance.

I've used tablets, but I always end up preferring either my phone or an actual laptop for the following reasons

* The phone is more portable.* Having a tablet would mean I need to plug in and use a phone AND a tablet next to my bed and who really wants to keep two similar devices up to speed?* The phone actually plays flash which I find super useful when browsing the internet.* The tablet (apple's side at least) feels much too controlled. I don't feel like I have any freedom to actually _use_ the device.* Ideology - I believe tablets should be pushing the limits of the web (as Chromebooks intend to do), not pushing app ecosystems that lock users into platforms. Yes this is also true of phones, but for whatever reason my mind considers phones as separate category. Perhaps because the screen size indicates enough reason for a different UX.

So no, I don't really have a place for a tablet in my arsenal. The only caveat is that I have a Kindle DX that I do eBook and PDF reading on. If I didn't have that I might have more reason for a tablet, but then I wouldn't get my eInk love.

I'm not a fan of tablets but at the same time I can understand people want a computer that works like their washer/dryer. It has specific tasks and does what they want it to do.

It's something that I would just call "simpler" and in the day and age where computers seem to be more and more dangerous due to malware I can say that they might even be protecting the average user (at this point in time).

I wanted something a little bit smaller and more portable. 7 or 8 inches, rather than 10. Partly because it would fit in more of the various bags I own, and partly because it would be much more comfortable when recumbant and holding it up.

The HTC Flyer came out, and was ridiculously expensive. But it soon enough went down in price, so I eventually bought one.

It's great. Pretty much exactly what I wanted - small, portable, and powerful enough to be useful. I've even written things on it with Google Docs, despite having thought that it would be "consumption only".

The only problem with it really was that it was Wifi-only. With portability comes a requirement for 3G/4G network access, otherwise you might as well be carrying a roof slate around.

So I checked the prices, and the HTC Flyer 3G was coming down too... I took the plunge, and haven't regretted it. It travels with me almost every day, and has pretty much replaced my netbook for any kind of short-period computing. (I still travel with the netbook for longer trips, as it's more comfortable to use for long periods.)

For me, these are the two things that really make a tablet:* Being small enough that you can take it everywhere* Having network access when you've taken it there

The first Flyer I bought could be classed as an expensive mistake. The second one is definitely "just right", and when it dies I now know what its replacement must have...

I'm not a fan of tablets but at the same time I can understand people want a computer that works like their washer/dryer. It has specific tasks and does what they want it to do.

It's something that I would just call "simpler" and in the day and age where computers seem to be more and more dangerous due to malware I can say that they might even be protecting the average user (at this point in time).

I completely agree with Nate Anderson about the "soothing experience". Before the iPad, I enjoyed to use a Mac at home, because it was a change with the daily PC at work. With iPad the change is even bigger, not even the UI but all hardware (form factor, touch instead of keyboad).

Recently, I took a Nexus 7 from a friend for couple of days as he wasn't really using it. I thought if I like it I'll go and buy one. Well, I didn't. Every time I tried doing something on the damned thing I would end up frustrated as hell. I don't read e-books, or use netflix, and I stream movies from my home server, which doesn't play very well with the tablet. It is not even good for reading articles. The screen is too small for that purpose and I still need a way to search my +500 articles library. On my computers I have installed JabRef and it's perfect, but on the tablet. Pff... It's like trying to cut your hand with a small spoon. It can be done, but it'll hurt a lot. And then there was the fact that it doesn't have Flash. That was the final nail in the coffin.

Conclusion. It's not for me. I prefer a small and light laptop with a keyboard. Tablets are just glorified phones.

I was never a heavy mobile user. I always had a laptop but I mainly used it a few times a year when I went on vacation. It was more like a desktop replacement. I'd hook it up in a hotel room with a mouse and it'd be sitting there. There were few times when I want to use a laptop on the go but it was either too cumbersome and too heavy for the space available, too hot or it'd take too long to boot up so it was not worth doing it for 10-15 minutes. I didn't even use it that much at home, it was too bulky and too hot to sit with it on a couch.

iPad changed that. I almost always carry my iPad with me and I use in in situations I'd never try to use a laptop: waiting in a doctors office, sitting on a bus, waiting for wife in a parking lot (when she's "almost" done shopping), etc. Certainly having affordable and decently fast cellular connection helps, but the form factor, instant-on and battery life just makes an iPad so much more inviting to use.

Oh and some tower defense games on iOS are awesome too;)

I would never consider replacing a laptop completely with a tablet, at least not yet, I'd still haul one to hotel rooms so I can download my pictures from a camera and work on them a bit, but I'd spend the rest of the time reading and browsing on the iPad. Tablets definitely fill a lot of gaps where laptop is just too inconvenient to use.

Oh, and my wife uses an iPad more now than her desktop or the HTPC, she's mainly watching shows, movies and email/chats/"skypes" with family and ever since I gave her an iPad they're inseparable

Our family has 2 iPads, 2 iPhones (well 3, but one is used as a Touch along with 2 actual Touches), an Android phone, a MacBook Air, and 2 Windows desktops, a couple Windows laptops, and a starting to age iMac.

The younger kids always gravitate to the iPad (one is Mom's only) when they can get a turn, except for school/web focused stuff. iPod Touches are the 2nd choice. My oldest (son) has the Android phone, and uses that for a lot of his surfing, and a laptop mostly used for Steam based gaming. He uses his Touch and the iPad for specific apps he can't use on his Android. The Windows boxen used to get used for CD ROM style edutainment, but since you can now get 'Freddie Fish' type apps on iTunes, most of that has migrated to the iPad.

Most of my computer face-time is at home is on my custom built Windows machine or my MacBook Air, or playing Words With Friends or 94 seconds on my iPhone. I get the feeling I'd use the iPad more if there wasn't such demand for it. I'm planning on getting a next gen mini when it comes out and seeing if it replaces most use cases of the Air (which I'll always need as a portable UNIX/programming/power box).

I got the 1st Gen iPad about 2 months after it came out, and took it back within 48 hours. I hated it - too big, too heavy, didn't fit with what I wanted.

When the iPad 2 came out, I got one a few months later, and I still have it. It is now my go-to device for pretty much everything except software development (xcode + xamarin studio for iOS please!). I do RSS; Browsing; social media; email; TV (BBC iPlayer mostly, via AppleTV); Movies if I'm on a plane (ATV otherwise); Writing; pretty much everything.

I'm waiting for the next 10 inch tablet from Apple - which I'm hoping will be like the current ones, but more iPad Mini styled. The current ones are ok, but aside from the retina display, the advantage isn't enough to warrent spending the money again. But it's starting to feel slow, and I can write it off the tax bill

I tried a Mini when it came out, but it was too small - I have fairly large hands, and I was having trouble typing on it. Screen and performance-wise, it was just like the iPad2 I have, so I sent it back. If the Mini is updated at the same time as a new iPad5, I'd consider it again I think. The weight of the Mini, tho, was fantastic.

Main difference is, I used to take my laptop when we went on holiday (or most places for more than a day). Now I take the iPad. We can offload photos onto it, browse the web etc. Basically, everything I used to take the laptop for. Not having the laptop means I am also less tempted to work when on holiday, which is good.

Still a skeptic. I bought an iPad when they came out. After a few weeks, I hardly ever touched it again. Like some of the skeptics in the article, I have a bunch of computers all over my house and the iPad just didn't do enough. Sure, email and web surfing it handled well but even my "casual" computing needs extend beyond that. Eventually, I even stopped using the iPad for even eBooks and started using my phone instead (also works great with audio books). My smart phone is with me in my pocket all the time and works fine for that. So, all the things that I actually could do on my iPad, i could do on my iPhone and the iPhone was SO much more portable. With the iPad, I had to fill one of my hands, wear a backpack, or carry a briefcase or something... pretty much the same exact situation if I were bringing a laptop other than a little increased weight with the laptop (in trade for vastly more functionality) over the tablet. My phone is in my pocket... hands are free, no backpack, no briefcase. For things I don't do on my phone, I usually need at least a laptop to do. The one advantage that I saw in the tablet was that it was quick to turn on and used less space than a laptop for the things I used it for. However, the phone was even easier... quicker access (than digging through a backpack or briefcase) and took even less space than the tablet.

My iPad sat on the desk gathering dust for months (over a year) until I sold it on eBay right before Apple EOL'd the OS on it (figured I'd better sell it while I could).

Tablets are not yet for me. Even lying in bed I just multitask too much to find the inherently single-task nature of the current tablets. I suspect I could get by with a Windows 8 tablet, but even then I can't justify the cost between my gaming PC and MacBook.

When my MacBook is long in the tooth in a few more years, I'll give tablets a good long look as an alternative to a new laptop.

For a long time I was waiting for something in this form factor, but found reasons to skip it. Ipod/iphone were too small for my tastes, other tablets were clunky. The iPad came along and still I resisted. I don't want to be a tech guinnea pig. Then came the iPad 2. I ran out of excuses and ponied up for a wifi 16gb. It is just about everything I could want it to be, except 2 iPad 2's.

I have a had a few Apple devices throughout time. I've had only Android smartphones. I generally like to just play with different OSes and devices. The screen on the 3rd gen iPad was enough to get me to roll out to Target when they opened on launch day and pick one up. I played around with it for a while. I thought the device was kinda neat.

Fast forward to today. I never use the iPad and I should sell it. The reason I don't use the iPad isn't because it is a bad device. The reason that I don't use the iPad is that most of the things I would use it for are either better handled by another device or it is less convenient to use than another device. I'm sure someone else would enjoy the device, it just doesn't fit my habits.

For books I use a Kindle with an eink screen and I find it is easier on the eyes. The ereader is far more portable, I can stick it in my back pocket and pull it out and set it on a table when I sit down.For most tasks like email and social networking I use a laptop, as having a real keyboard and pointing device just suits my style better and I can get things done faster.If I want quick access to something, I just pull the phone out of my pocket and use that.

Sometimes I pull out the iPad when working on a home improvement project, as I don't have to worry about getting dust int he keyboard and the device is much smaller laid out on a table than my laptop.

Maybe in time things will change, but right now tablets just aren't getting a lot of use in my case. If I get another tablet, I think a Nexus 7 or iPad mini might make more sense for me.

I love my tablet(s). I got a Xoom a couple of years ago and now I have a Nexus 7. I'm on a PC for about 10 hours a day at work, so when I go home, I don't really want to spend any more time "computing." For the stuff I do around the house, a tablet is perfect. I have all the functionality I need for bumping around on the web, e-mail, etc.

The only thing I would miss about not having a PC around the house is doing things like programming my Logitech Harmony remote and setting up routers and other network devices where I might need an ethernet port. If there were a way to do those things on a tablet, I wouldn't need to keep my old, POS laptop around.

Still a skeptic. I bought an iPad when they came out. After a few weeks, I hardly ever touched it again. Like some of the skeptics in the article, I have a bunch of computers all over my house and the iPad just didn't do enough.

Yeah, a tablet can't replace a desktop for most people. I also spend majority of my time in front of a Mac or a PC (have a few) but I like to lie down with an iPad and play some relaxing games or read some magazines. There are are times though that I won't touch it for days. On the go, however, I'd take an iPad even over MB Air.

So yeah, I could live without it, but I'd rather not:) I can see though how many people may not find any use for a tablet in their lives For the most part it's strictly a consumption device. It's a bout expectations: it's unreasonable to expect that a tablet would replace a computer for most people (yet), but if you take it as an extra device to fill some gaps it will work. But then, many people may not be able to justify the expense for just having an extra gadget that's laying around most of the time.

It was the $500 price point that was the killer feature. Having it at $800 would have not be appealing to many. But the democratization of a high quality device for doing the things that normal people do in their everyday lives that made it the big winner. Has gotten better ever since.

That's not just a tablet hold-out - that's a future of technology hold-out.

Flash is still widely used to this day, for a variety of legitimate reasons. I'd applaud any tablet OS that supports it, because it's something I want (and occasionally need) to use, and can't right now. Technology is supposed to cater to my wishes, not the other way around.

I'm still an unbeliever. My 4.8" Galaxy S3 is essentially a pocket-able tablet with all the same features but without the bulk, and with the added benefit of some privacy when using it in the public like on the train - honestly I think it looks ridiculous when someone pulls out a tablet on the bus or train and it extends halfway over the seat neighbor's lap.

Maybe if I was a fan of e-books I would find it useful, but I prefer audio books and find them more relaxing - I like to rest my eyes for 30 minutes on the way home from an 8+ hour workday in front of a screen.

For anything where the S3 is too limited, a tablet would have all the same limitations since it's just a slightly bigger version of the same thing.

I think this reflects the fact that the majority of tasks for which we use a computer really don't need the full level of sophisitication and accuracy that a mouse and keyboard provide. Most of the time we just want a screen on which we can consume content.

The one arena in which the iPad has really taken hold for content creation is live music production, which is one where interfaces have always been designed for simplicity rather than sophistication.

In the time it takes me to resume my Windows 7 netbook from hibernate, log in and start Firefox (ignoring any random software update pop-ups along the way), I can unlock the iPad, go to the website in question and find out what I want to know. Same goes for checking email, shopping on eBay or Amazon, looking at Facebook or finding something on a map.

Of course, I could close the gap by resuming the netbook from sleep, but it wouldn't last the ridiculous number of days the iPad does.

The only annoyances I have is that the browser doesn't come with AdBlock and I'm unable to use Firefox sync - so all my passwords, bookmarks, history and autocomplete forms are missing.

It'll never replace my desktop (and Steve Job's never said that it would) but my netbook certainly gets much less use.

I was skeptical at first. I didn't see room for a device between my smart phone and my laptop. However I'm I the publishing business, and I knew I'd soon need first hand experience with an e-reader. So when the iPad 2 was announced, and the price reduced on the iPad 1s, I grabbed a refurb for an additional discount. Two years later, I use it daily for many tasks, and it has a prominent place among my gadgetry. A year later I did the same with the iPad 2 for my non-techie wife, and she uses hers even more than I do.

While the virtues of lightweight portability are obvious, I think the instant-on, instant-launch capabilities of tablets, and what that means for daily usage, are under-recognized.

I picked up my iPad 1 on Day One. I loved it instantly. The fact that all my contacts came over via MobleMe was a big plus. This was the first time I had experienced a device setting itself up with "all my stuff" wirelessly. I have been using it heavily, mostly as an ereader with the Kindle software. I also use it to keep up on emails and I have occasionally used it to remotely control my Mac. I skipped the iPad 2, 3 and 4 but when the mini came out I snapped it up. It is an even better form factor than the iPad 1 which I passed along to one of the kids. We are now a 4-ipad household: A mini, an iPad 1 and two iPad 2's. I also really like the way the Apple smart covers reduce the wear and tear on the home button.

I picked up a BT keyboard for my iPad and I've used it a handful of times. I find that I don't mind the on screen keyboard on the iPad enough to bother carrying along the BT KB.

When we travel, no computers make the cut. The only thing in our carry-ons are our iPads. Sure there are some things I can't do on the iPad but dozens of times a day my iPad mini saves me the long trudge down to the basement to use my Macbook Pro.

If something happened to my iPad, I'd replace it right away. What lingering annoyances do I have?

1) Some sites dump me into a mobile version despite the fact I'm viewing them at "desktop" resolution on my iPad mini.

2) No filesystem after 3 years. I'd really like to have a user accessible filesystem on my iPad beyond the ability to have multiple apps access the camera roll. There really needs to be a generic file area that all apps can reach rather than passing around copies of documents from one app to another.

3) No alternative browsers after 3 years. It's not enough to have "skins" over Apple's webkit based browser. I want a totally independent third party browser option.

4) Some good apps are still not in the app store. One such app is Wifi Analyzer. This is a must-have for road warriors and I shouldn't have to even think about Cydia to get such an essential app.

The ipad is the computer I wish people had 15 years ago. Well, at least the easy, no BS registry, easy to reformat/reinstall to default, easy to update and install programs, no hardware (crappy buggy) drivers to deal with, little to no complexity for stupid malware to hide. MS could have had a killing making a computer easy to use and maintain. But noooo!

And yet I loved the general purpose computer with the ability to put in whatever hardware I wanted. Problem was, around 90% of others couldn't care about that because they had no idea how to utilize it.

I don't like parts of apple, but I recommend the ipad to people anyway. I like the Nexus stuff but that doesn't matter to most.

edit:A downrate within 10 seconds of posting? How bout reading it first thank you.

Picked up an iPad2 maybe a year and a half ago and have since upgraded (side-graded?) to a Nexus 7. They have definitely replaced my laptop for most of its tasks but I keep a desktop for "heavy lifting" like design, games, media storage/server, etc. The laptop was always used as a less powerful but more portable way to extend my computing reach to the living room, conference room, or waiting room.

Most of the things I was using my laptop for are the things tablets excel at--web browsing, note taking, reading, and the occasional movie or casual game. The increased portability just makes it easier to tote around.

The only real reason I keep my laptop now is for things like DJing or messing with projection mapping and other visual art stuff. The tablet still can't run Traktor or Resolume (not the full versions at least). Other than that, there are very few times when I need something more capable than a tablet away from home.

The only down side I've found is that sometimes when things don't work the way you want, it's not as simple to fix them as it is on a "regular" Windows or OSX computer. My iPad was often an exercise in frustration until it was jailbroken. Simple functionality couldn't be changed without exploiting security holes to run unsigned software. That kinda turned me off after a while. Even without that, on the iPad or my Nexus, if an app crashes to desktop, that's it. Not really much troubleshooting to do. Nothing to fix. Only option is to deal with it or buy another app and hope it works better. I know the Nexus will offer to send an error report which at least lets me feel like I'm helping to fix the issue. iOS apps just occasionally close without warning and leave me at the launcher.

Web browsing on my iPad is still too much of a pain for me to do any product or "how-to" research on. I browse with a lot of tabs and multiple windows on my laptop. I can never tell where the tabs I just opened are in Safari.

I don't use it for movies or TV shows, either. I have a 60" TV and a 7.1 surround system for that. The speaker sucks too much for video without headphones. I have to cup my hand around the back of the iPad to amplify it.

Writing anything on the iPad is a lesson in frustration. If it just had arrow keys on the keyboard, it would be a ton better. But all the touching and holding and dragging to place the cursor is just painful.

Honestly, I could easily live without my iPad. My laptop? Not so much.

I've tried tablets a few times but I've not used them as I find 10in size tablets are just too functionally basic and the smaller ones don't really offer anything over my original Note and on fact normally less (such as no memory expansion). The Note easily fulfils all my casual needs that others prefer tablets for and the vastly more functional Vaio Duo 11 serves as my ultralight.